For better or for worse, we're at the zenith of the Second Great Horsepower Race.

You remember the First Great Horsepower Race, which started in the mid-1960s with the Pontiac GTO and ended with the Gas Crisis in the early 1970s. The current Race began with the reintroduction of the HEMI engine in Chrysler production cars in 1996. Today you can get a 2007 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 Coupe that will crank out 500 hp, a phenomenal amount of power for a mass production vehicle. The Horsepower Race have had a trickle-down effect up and down manufacturer's lineups -- formerly sedate family cars now routinely feature 200 hp plus -- much more than they really need.

Unfortunately, with every zenith must come a nadir -- and the same culprit that ended the First Great Horsepower Race has reared its ugly head. High gas prices.

You can't get something for nothing, and one of the main prices you pay for more horsepower is lower fuel economy. All of a sudden, manufacturers have to scramble to answer "how far does it go?" before "how fast can it go?" You can see it in their ads, and you can see it in the frightened looks in their eyes. Soon, you'll see it on the showroom floor -- more small, fuel efficient cars, and fewer high horsepower beasts.

I, for one, will be very sad. I love horsepower.

Just what is horsepower, anyway? How does it relate to torque? Our own Dale Wickell, Guide to Trucks at About Trucks, has written an excellent article about Horsepower and Torque -- I learned a thing or two!

Photo © Jason Fogelson